OPTIMISTIC ON RUSSIA: Without forecasting any breakthroughs, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Saturday he believes Russia wants to resolve sensitive security disputes with the U.S., including proposed missile defenses in central Europe.

President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to respond swiftly to a proposal that he become prime minister after Russia's presidential election in March, a senior government official and close Putin ally said Wednesday.

Russia unveiled its first all-new airliner since the fall of the Soviet Union on Wednesday, hoping to curb dependence on oil and gas exports and restore pride in its teetering aviation industry. Sukhoi's Superjet 100 is designed to seat 78-98 passengers and is the fruit of almost a decade of efforts by Russia's largest warplane maker to branch out into commercial passenger jet production targeted at Western airlines.

Russia on Tuesday test-launched a new intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying multiple independent warheads, and a top government official said it could penetrate any defense system, a news agency reported.

Hundreds of black-clad, mostly elderly people gathered Sunday outside the prosecutors' office in the southern Russian city of Nalchik, demanding the release of the bodies of relatives killed during a raid by alleged Islamic extremists.

The eight-day maneuvers with 7,000 Chinese troops and 1,800 Russians underscored growing military ties between the former Cold War enemies, motivated by their common unease with U.S. dominance in world affairs.

Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov on Saturday criticized NATO's expansion into three former Soviet states on the Baltic Sea and warned that NATO warplanes flying patrols over those countries create a risk of accidental incidents.